Seafarers bring us 95% of the things we use every day and take care of us when we travel by sea, but their lives are often tough. They experience long periods away from family and friends with limited or no communication, fast turnaround of ships in ports with severely restricted shore leave, reduced crew numbers and increased workloads. Welfare services and facilities both on board and ashore can be a lifeline for seafarers. Our free, 24-hour, multilingual helpline, SeafarerHelp, is one of the direct welfare services we provide to seafarers. Others include our relief funds for seafarers and their family members in need and a range of health information resources. We work with companies, unions, governments, welfare organisations and ports for the implementation of the ILO Maritime Labour Convention, 2006. We support those who establish and provide welfare facilities and services in port and on ships. We are funded by membership subscriptions, grants from foundations, sponsorship and earned income. We are grateful to our main funders – the ITF Seafarers' Trust, The TK Foundation, Seafarers UK and Trafigura Foundation – for their continued support. Membership of ISWAN “ISWAN has the knowledge and expertise of seafarers' major needs. For us, it has the capability to provide information and prompt assistance when necessary, using the network to find members closest to the point of need. ISWAN is a significant assistance to our Welfare Board as we work for the comfort and safety of seafarers.” - Kunle Folarin Chair of the National Seafarers' Welfare Board of Nigeria. ISWAN is a network of international organisations committed to improving the welfare of seafarers. Our members reflect the diversity present in the shipping industry today, and include important organisations such as the International Chamber of Shipping (ICS), the International Christian Maritime Association (ICMA), and the International Transport Workers Federation (ITF). From shipping companies to unions, insurance groups to welfare organisations, our members possess a wealth of different experience and include key influencers in the field of seafarers' welfare. Seafarers are the lifeblood of the shipping industry and every maritime organisation can help to ensure seafarers have access to the best facilities and working conditions on board and in port. Through ISWAN membership, organisations can find out what more they can do to improve the lives of seafarers. “Why joining ISWAN is important to those working in seafarers' welfare? Easy, it helps us in so many ways to support and help seafarers. ISWAN's seminars are full of ways of to educate us on how to deal with the daily issues seafarers go through.' - Lilliam Alvarado-Jurado Assistant Manager, Seafarers' House San Juan. Whatever your business objectives, ISWAN members can take advantage of a number of opportunities which will benefit your organisation and also help us to continue to offer direct services to seafarers in need. ISWAN Regional Programme Our Regional Programme provides humanitarian support to seafarers and their families in three specific regions: South East Asia, South Asia and Nigeria. Seafarers taken hostage have a major worry about what becomes of their families while they face months or years of captivity. Our Regional Programme was developed in response to the needs of seafarers facing the crisis of being taken hostage by pirates and the families left behind. We provided emotional and practical support, training in crisis response, and guidelines for the treatment of seafarers and their families. To be situated in the areas of greatest need, the programme developed a presence in the Philippines (home to more seafarers than anywhere else in the world), India/South Asia and Nigeria. Our trained responders operate with a network of volunteers and through other seafarers' welfare agencies to reach scattered families with assistance. As Somali piracy reduced in size and scope, our Regional Programme moved towards the wider effects of crises – deaths, injuries, illness, imprisonment – among seafarers and their families, where we are able to bring practical and emotional support in times of need. Seafarers' Mental Health and Wellbeing Seafarers' Mental Health and Wellbeing is a free training package produced by KVH Videotel in partnership with ISWAN. Seafarers face unique working conditions which can put them under a lot of stress, with fewer opportunities for relief than they would be likely to find on land. Seafarers' Mental Health and Wellbeing focuses on the positive things seafarers can do to help themselves and their fellow crew members deal better with the challenges of life on board. The training package is suitable for individual viewing and can also be used for training sessions onboard and ashore. It comprises a 23-minute video, facilitator notes to assist those who running training sessions on vessels, and our Good Mental Health Guides. Indian Seafarers Campaign We have launched a campaign to discourage Indian seafarers from signing up with crewing agencies which have not registered with the Directorate General of Shipping (DGS). Every year, thousands of Indian seafarers join merchant shipping through unregistered crewing agencies. Many of them have been left stranded outside India or not been paid their wages. Some have even fallen into the trap of working on a ship carrying illegal cargo, and have had to spend a considerable amount of time in prison, most likely through no fault of their own. Another problem is that seafarers with unregistered crewing agencies will not be able to appear for higher grade examinations conducted by the Mercantile Marine Department (MMD) of the DGS. All these difficulties affect not only the seafarers themselves but also their families, who can find themselves financially at risk without a reliable income upon which to survive. Our campaign aims to discourage Indian seafarers from signing up with unregistered crewing agencies by raising awareness of the risks they would face by doing so. We have produced a poster and flyer to promote the campaign's message and the DGS has issued a circular advising Maritime Training Institutes, RPSL manning agents and other relevant departments and organisations to support the campaign